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Special audit to probe backlog of rape evidence kits

SANTA FE — New Mexico's state auditor is looking into what practices led to the backlog of more than 5,400 untested evidence kits from sexual assaults and rapes at law enforcement agencies and evidence vaults across the state.

SANTA FE — New Mexico's state auditor is looking into what practices led to the backlog of more than 5,400 untested evidence kits from sexual assaults and rapes at law enforcement agencies and evidence vaults across the state.

State Auditor Tim Keller announced Thursday a special survey of eight police departments and sheriff offices aimed at identifying root causes of the backlog and providing better policies and written standards to prevent untested kits from piling up again.

Without the additional review, "the state runs the risk of spending substantial resources to clear the backlognow, only to find itself with a new backlog of kits in a few years," the state auditor's office said in a statement.

New Mexico is among states including Ohio, South Dakota and Kentucky that have recently launched efforts to track down and process untested kits as they became aware of backlogs. New Mexico state lawmakers and the governor approved additional funding in February to help clear the untested evidence.

Keller's new audit will span state law enforcement agencies from Hobbs to Farmington and includes the Albuquerque Police Department.

A coordinator for the training for sexual assault examiners says the special audit is not punitive and will include some professional assistance for police agencies that may be strapped for cash.

"We have to learn how this happens so that it doesn't happen again," said Connie Monahan, of the nonprofit New Mexico Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs. "These are large white envelopes and large brown bags. How did people not see this?"

The kits typically hold DNA evidence such as pieces of hair or swabs from a victim's body, which can help investigators solve a crime or possibly link a solved case to other crimes.

Test results are entered into a database that can lead officials to discover whether an assailant is a serial offender.